site.btaUPDATED Chamber of Commerce Bulgaria-Romania President: We Can Only Enter Schengen Together

In a BTA interview, Bilateral Chamber of Commerce Bulgaria – Romania President Doru Dragomir said that Bulgaria and Romania can only enter the Schengen area together. "From a logistical point of view, it makes no sense for Bulgaria and Romania to be separated," Dragomir added. He visited the Romanian capital to attend Back2Business, the largest international networking event held on November 7. The Bilateral Chamber of Commerce Bulgaria – Romania was one of the partners of the forum, which brought together 450 diplomats, politicians, representatives of business associations, and investors.

"Think of this event as the voice of Romanian business communities who have international interests and want to make a difference, those who say, for example, they do good business and good trade with Bulgaria, but they want more," the Chamber President said.

Dragomir has worked in the private sector for over 20 years, experiencing the great inflation in Romania in 1996 and the global financial crisis that hit Southeast Europe in 2008-2009. He graduated from the Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University in Georgia (US) in 2007. He also graduated with a degree in law in Romania. His Chamber of Commerce has over 45 members from 25 different economic sectors. It is one of the two bilateral chambers with a special focus on Romanian-Bulgarian economic relations.

Following are key moments from the interview:

Q: How would you describe the trade relations between Romania and Bulgaria? And what do they look like in figures?

A: In the last 10-15 years, the Romania-Bulgaria relationship has been largely limited to trade and sales, not investments. Any economist will tell you that Romania has the capital and Bulgaria has better tax policy. This means that investment should go from Romania, capital should move from Romania to Bulgaria, which is obviously much better in fiscal terms, but then the goods should go back to Romania, which has a bigger market. The harsh reality shows that in practice, it is the other way around. We have more Bulgarian investment in Romania than Romanian investment in Bulgaria. But even under these conditions, over 90% of the total trade between Bulgaria and Romania is mainly purchases and sales.

Q: What do Bulgarian companies lack in order to be more successful on the Romanian market?

A: Both Bulgarians and Romanians are impatient. They are reluctant to invest before they have made a profit. They also do not heed the example of the companies that have already achieved success. There are such companies оn both the Bulgarian and the Romanian markets. A Bulgarian frozen foods company became the best on the Romanian market, but it took time. Time to invest in itself, its staff and advertising. This is what we are trying to explain to all the companies from Romania and Bulgaria: to invest, to take their time, and to take their job seriously.

Q: What Bulgarian products are in demand in Romania?

A: There is currently a very large trade of food and beverages between the two countries. The big problem that we are trying to find a way around, because we are not in a position to look for a solution, is that neither Romanian nor Bulgarian producers are represented on the relevant market with their own brand. Many products from Bulgaria are displayed on the shelves of the large retail chains in Romania, but they do not carry their own brand names, instead carrying those of the respective shops. From a business standpoint, the company is happy. “I sold EUR 30 million worth of cheese this year. I obviously made a profit.” But the cheese in question is not recognized in Romania as cheese from Bulgaria. And nobody will say “I like this Bulgarian cheese”. Because the label reads “Made in the EU”. The same goes for Romanian products on the Bulgarian market.

That is why one of the projects we have been working on for the last six months is about creating two showrooms for food and beverages: one in Sofia and one in Bucharest. We want to display Bulgarian and Romanian products next to each other. The point is for customers to come in, have a look, sample, and then find the product in its original form, by its brand. We will tell them where to find the product. Needless to say, the project will also involve the distribution of these products in the two countries.

I am sure that if we manage to launch these showrooms, the demand for specific, traditional Bulgarian and Romanian products will increase, regardless of our different tastes. In keeping with standards, Bulgaria puts certain ingredients in its salami, which Romania does not. The Bulgarian salami will taste differently to a Romanian. They will not eat it every morning for breakfast. Although they like it, they will eat it once a week. It goes without saying that there will be fewer sales. Likewise, the traditional Romanian salami made in Sibiu is not liked by everyone in Bulgaria because it is fatty. We have different tastes, but if we take cheese, for example, it is almost the same.

In addition to food and beverages, pharmaceuticals are another major part of the trade between the two countries. I am talking mainly about supplements. I am a little disappointed because the statistics from two years ago show that one of the main products exchanged between the two countries was iron. Iron as a raw material, not as a processed product. This makes us think that our economies are still developing. We are not producing a finished product that will hit the shelves. We give others the raw material from which they will make a finished, ready-to-use product.

Take, for example, the agricultural situation both in Bulgaria and Romania in the last year. We have been competing with Ukraine all the time. Why? Because, unfortunately, like the Ukrainians, we sell a lot of unfinished goods. We sell wheat without making flour from it, and we sell sunflowers without making oil from them.

We cannot compete with certain global-level economies that will always be cheaper than us. You can never compete with an Asian economy that has low costs and cheap labour - half of what Bulgaria has. But if Romania and Bulgaria become suppliers of end products that have added value, things will change.

Q: What will happen with the two countries in terms of their economies if they keep blocking our Schengen accession, and is it possible for our bids to be split? In a Bloomberg interview on Tuesday, Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu hinted at such a possibility.

A: I am not an expert on the topic, but I am a man who loves history. Since 2004, when we were admitted to NATO, our two countries have come in a package deal. Every country in Western Europe sees us as one whole when it comes to strategies and a common vision for the region. Bulgaria and Romania have always come in a package deal. We joined NATO together, we joined the EU together, and I believe we can only enter Schengen together. In my opinion, from a logistical point of view, it makes no sense for the two countries to be separated. You cannot say: “Those in the north are fine, but the ones in the south we have problems with because migrants are coming in” or vice versa. I don't see how it could happen. I think we will either enter Schengen together or stay out of it together.